March 26, 2009
Eat to live
Marvellous mushrooms
Not only are the fungi delicious, they are also nutritious and easy to prepare, says SYLVIA TAN
Never will I look at a mushroom in the same way again. It is already one of my favourite foods but I have been discovering more and more good reasons to eat it apart from its taste. This is great as so few of my favourite foods are good for me.
One of the most nutritionally rich foods around, protein makes up some 10 to 30 per cent of a mushroom's content. It is also high in vitamin C and potassium.
Its nutritional content alone would be good enough reason to eat it. However, for those who are still not convinced, let me state that it also has medicinal properties. The hiratake oyster mushroom, for one, is a natural source of statins, a cholesterol-lowering drug. The shitake is known to enhance the immune system and is gaining ground medically for its anti-tumour qualities.
I visited Mycofarm, a gourmet mushroom farm in Seletar, recently and learnt new things about mushrooms.
With a farm right on our doorstep, mushrooms have become one of the freshest foods we can buy. After all, how many vegetables do we know are grown in land-starved Singapore where we import most of our fresh produce?
At Mycofarm, I saw many beautiful and exotic mushrooms on sale. The willow mushrooms looked like a clump of grey velvet buttons, while the oyster mushrooms were shaped like tulips or oyster shells. The coral mushrooms looked like white coral and had a texture like fish maw after cooking.
I got to taste the freshly picked mushrooms and found them sweet and succulent with a delicate and subtle flavour. I could not wait to take them home to cook them.
There is not much work involved in preparing mushrooms. Very little washing is necessary - indeed the less the better as the flavour leaches out in water - and very little cooking of the fungi is required. You can even eat them raw.
While a mushroom steamboat is popular, especially during the festive season, I really like mushrooms on toast which requires just a simple fry-up.
The recipe I am sharing today takes this idea but adds a mushroom 'steak' to it to make a complete meal out of just mushrooms.
The king oysters - sometimes called eryngi and which are used to make the mushroom steak - are large and meaty and simply need to be sliced and seared.
To this, I have added a pile of mixed mushrooms; you will need quite a lot as the mushrooms will shrink in the cooking. I sliced the larger ones and fried the lot with soya bean paste or taucheo and garlic. Fresh green chillies perk up the flavour.
I promise you will not miss the meat in this meal.
Sylvia Tan is a freelance writer
RECIPE
MUSHROOM STEAK AND STIR-FRY
(Serves 4-6)
Half a punnet each of shitake, coral, hiratake or oyster mushrooms, and willow mushrooms or any selection of mixed mushrooms you like
4-6 king oyster mushrooms
1 tbs soya bean paste (taucheo)
1 tsp chopped garlic
2-3 sliced green chillies
1 tsp sugar
1 tbs Chinese rice wine
Butter lettuce leaves or similar soft lettuce for garnishing
Method
Using a damp cloth, wipe off any surface dirt on the mushrooms or give them a quick rinse under the tap. Do not soak or wet mushrooms too much or they will lose their flavour.
Thickly slice the king oysters lengthwise. Set them aside. Slice the shitake and oyster mushrooms and break apart the bundles of willow and coral mushrooms.
Heat 1 tbs of olive or peanut oil in a pan and when hot, sear the king oyster slices. Remove and set them aside.
Add more oil if needed. Saute the garlic and soya bean paste over a low flame until fragrant. Add the mixed mushrooms and a splash of rice wine and sugar. Toss to ensure seaasoning is evenly distributed. Cook till mushrooms wilt.
Add the sliced green chillies and give it a quick stir. Taste and adjust seasoning as desired with a pinch of salt.
Place the slices of seared king oysters on a plate. Beside them, add a lettuce leaf or two, place the pile of mixed mushrooms on the leaves and serve.
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